Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 54

Devanagari script

व्रात्यता व्रतसंत्यागः सर्वाहारनिषेवणम् । असच्छास्त्राभिगमनं शुष्कतर्काव लंबनम्

Transliteration

vrātyatā vratasaṃtyāgaḥ sarvāhāraniṣevaṇam | asacchāstrābhigamanaṃ śuṣkatarkāva laṃbanam

Translation

العيش كمنبوذ خارج انضباط الفيدا، وترك النذور المقدّسة، وتناول كلّ الأطعمة بلا تمييز، واللجوء إلى كتبٍ زائفة، والتعلّق بجدلٍ عقيمٍ جاف—كل ذلك يُدان بوصفه سُبلاً غير طاهرة للمعيشة.

Word by Word

• vrātyatā: being a vrātya (non-vedic/outcaste conduct)
• vrātyatā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vrātyatā (प्रातिपदिक; तद्धित -तल्)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• vrata: vow, observance
• vrata: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vrata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, (समासपूर्वपद)

• saṃtyāgaḥ: abandonment of vows
• saṃtyāgaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: saṃtyāga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; व्रतस्य संत्यागः (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष)

• sarva: all
• sarva: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनामविशेषण, (समासपूर्वपद)

• āhāra: food
• āhāra: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: āhāra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, (समासपूर्वपद)

• niṣevaṇam: consumption of all kinds of food
• niṣevaṇam: Karta/Karma (Subject or object in list/कर्ता/विषय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: niṣevaṇa (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक; √sev (धातु) + ni + ल्युट्)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; सर्वाहारस्य निषेवणम् (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष; बहुपदसमास)

• asat: false, improper
• asat: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: asat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग/विशेषण, (समासपूर्वपद)

• śāstra: treatise, doctrine
• śāstra: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śāstra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, (समासपूर्वपद)

• abhigamanam: resorting to false doctrines
• abhigamanam: Karta/Karma (Subject or object in list/कर्ता/विषय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: abhigamana (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक; √gam (धातु) + abhi + ल्युट्)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; असच्छास्त्रस्य अभिगमनम् (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष; बहुपदसमास)

• śuṣka: dry, barren
• śuṣka: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śuṣka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग/विशेषण, (समासपूर्वपद)

• tarka: logic, argument
• tarka: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tarka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, (समासपूर्वपद)

• avalambanam: reliance on dry logic
• avalambanam: Karta/Karma (Subject or object in list/कर्ता/विषय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: avalambana (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक; √lamb (धातु) + ava + ल्युट्)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; शुष्कतर्कस्य अवलम्बनम् (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष; बहुपदसमास)

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) to the sages (deduced from Māheśvarakhaṇḍa narrative style)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A pilgrim at a crossroads chooses a path marked ‘śāstra’ and ‘vrata’ while turning away from a gaudy path labeled ‘asacchāstra’ and ‘śuṣka-tarka’; a simple meal and vow-thread symbolize discipline; a temple silhouette beckons ahead.

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Dharma is sustained by vows, discernment, and right teaching; abandoning them leads to impurity and spiritual decline.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No single tīrtha is named in this verse; it lays general ethical foundations used throughout Skanda Purāṇa’s māhātmya sections.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

It implies preserving vratas and rejecting adharma; no specific dāna/snānā/japa is prescribed in this line.